Boo-it-yourself Halloween pumpkins

Decorate Halloween pumpkins in a flash with absolutely no carving necessary.

By AIMEE BLANCHETTE, Star Tribune

October 18, 2012 at 1:21PM
Pumpkin carving is a time-honored tradition, but it�s time consuming, takes a certain bit of skill and it�s only a matter of time before the pumpkin begins to rot. Beyond the knife, there are many ways of dressing up the pumpkin to celebrate the season. Here are a few ideas to get you started. [ TOM WALLACE � twallace@startribune.com _ Assignments #20025647A_ October 9, 2012_ SLUG: pumpkins1018_ EXTRA INFORMATION: Pumpkins made by staff and friends
It takes a lot of candy corn -- and patience -- to make this decorated pumpkin. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

With Halloween creeping up, it's time to add some panache to all those pumpkins. While carving is a time-honored tradition, it's also time-consuming, takes some skill and you have to deal with the slimy insides. (Eek!) Besides, it's only a matter of time before the jack-o'-lantern you worked so hard to create begins to rot. So forget the knife altogether. There a thousand other ways to dress up your pumpkin for the season. We wanted to scare, er, share some ideas on how to turn your plain-jane gourds into smashing pumpkins.

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AIMEE BLANCHETTE, Star Tribune